Q&A Konstantino Sioulas

Timeless Beauty

Greek jewelry designer Konstantino Sioulas was raised amidst
some of the world’s greatest ancient architecture. He integrates
his love for ancient Greece—along with modern influences—into his
stunning designs. His collection is available locally at Neiman
Marcus.

LN: How did you
become interested in making jewelry?

KS: In life, people fall in love twice: once
with their high school sweetheart, and again when they get married,
live their life and have kids. My first love was music; I was a
disc jockey in clubs. But I also had background in philosophy and a
fascination with ancient Greece. On my 22nd year, I denied my
previous life, went to Greece, and began selling reproductions of
ancient Greek jewelry. That was the start, and the rest is history.
I lived my life the way I wanted, did what I wanted, designed what
I wanted and got rewarded. I got very lucky.

LN: Where does
your inspiration come from?

KS: My designs are a mixture of everything from
Socrates to Gandhi, Jimi Hendrix and The Rolling Stones. A lot of
it is architectural, but my inspiration is everything beautiful. I
never try to use a source as a copy and try to match; instead I try
to make it richer as a designer and make my own creation.

LN: You’re quoted
as saying, People want to wear something beautiful, something
timeless, something special. How do you achieve a timeless
piece?

KS: With blood, sweat and tears. It’s not easy.
I produce every piece going out to my customers in Greece—it
doesn’t make me as much money, but it makes me happy. I don’t
believe in mass-production jewelry. Jewelry touches the skin and
soul and aesthetic senses of people. The soul will be transferred
to the metal by the feelings you have while you’re making it.
Jewelry shouldn’t be a product; it should be a piece of art.
Jewelry is not a job for me. It’s my lifestyle. It’s my drug, my
passion.

LN: Do you find
the tastes in jewelry are different for American women versus
European women?

KS: In the ’50s and ’60s, people would say
European women were more stylish than American women. This is a
myth. Designers from all over the world show their best stuff in
the U.S. because America is a place where people appreciate good
art and good design. All over the world there are stylish women,
and a stylish woman is a beautiful woman. She could be 80 and if
she is stylish, she will be beautiful.

LN: Do you have a
favorite material or gem to work with?

KS: I can’t stand cheap metals, fake stone, the
materials that people use just to make money. I like the real
thing—real jewelry, real gold and silver and precious stones. The
stones are the flowers from inside the earth, and the flowers from
outside the earth are the inspiration. If you look at the stones
and their colors, you’ll be amazed by the beauty the earth has
inside her heart. If you walk the fields in America they’re full of
flowers. Combine these things and you make Konstantino.

LN: Do you have a
different approach designing jewelry for men compared to
women?

KS: For men, I make the beauty and freshness
from subtracting—I can’t add flowers to make it beautiful. I think,
feel and act differently than when I design the women’s collection.
I love the challenge.

It’s all about the newness and the freshness, that’s why I
love the fashion industry. You’re good or you’re out. I never care
about what made me. I care about what will make me, what will wow
my customers and make my collectors buy their 20th Konstantino item
with love. LN